One of many factors to be considered in the design of exercise equipment is energy absorption. On treadmills, for example, impact is created each time a person's foot lands on the tread and/or deck. In the absence of an energy absorption system, the impact rebounds into the person's foot and may cause harmful stress to the person's joints. In recognition of this potential problem with treadmills, equipment designers have developed systems to absorb or dissipate the impact so that it does not rebound into the exerciser's feet and legs. Examples of such systems are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,350,336 to Hanford and U.S. Pat. No. 5,382,207 to Skowronski et al. Despite these advances in the art, room for improvement remains.